If you are reading this, the chances are you are involved in the motor trade, so the thought of giving up your car would probably be unthinkable. However, across Europe a growing proportion of motorists are considering exactly that.

It seems many first time car buyers are delaying vehicle purchases, opting instead to rent a car when required. These are just some of the findings of a new survey on attitudes to vehicle ownership conducted by You Gov Plc for the Europcar rental organisation. Some interesting facts to emerge are:

76% of drivers underestimate the full cost of car ownership.
68% of motorists have reduced their number of journeys recently to save money
46% of drivers have adjusted their driving style to save fuel.
34% of motorist feel trapped into car ownership by their location, work and family.
25% of drivers now believe the cost of car ownership outweighs the benefits
3% of the households surveyed had actually given up first or second vehicle ownership.

Drivers in continental Europe seem far more prepared to scarifice their cars, with 18% saying they would be prepared to forgo vehicle ownership.

The UK based survey found that the annual cost of keeping a car on the road to be £2,435 (€3,082) while a similar calculation by Sainsbury's Finance put the figure at £2,543.85 per year, an annual rise of 13.55%.